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Hand-washing by preschool-aged children and their caregivers had a significant protective effect against community-acquired HFMD and herpangina from the human enterovirus 71 infection.

Background We aimed to assess the recurrence risk of sinonasal inverted papillomas (SNIPs), based on a staging system developed according to the originating site of SNIP. Methods A total of 200 patients with SNIP were enrolled, and a staging system was developed based on the originating sites and corresponding recurrence rates of tumor in the patients. In the verification phase, 675 patients with SNIPs were enrolled as above, and the originating sites of the SNIPs were confirmed by an endoscopic sinus surgery. Cluster analysis was performed to determine the stage for each SNIP. Results Overall, 608 patients completed the study. SNIP recurrence rates for stages 1‐4 were 0 (n = 43), 4.0% (n = 420), 13.4% (n = 134), 36.4% (n = 11), respectively (total = 6.4%). Conclusions The origin site‐based classification of SNIP may aid surgeons in selecting appropriate endoscopic surgical approaches to minimize the risk of recurrence.

Gonorrhea is the second most common sexually transmitted infection in the world and is caused by Gram-negative diplococcus Neisseria gonorrhoeae . Since N. gonorrhoeae is a human-specific pathogen, animal infection models are only of limited use. Therefore, a suitable in vitro cell culture model for studying the complete infection including adhesion, transmigration and transport to deeper tissue layers is required. In the present study, we generated three independent 3D tissue models based on porcine small intestinal submucosa (SIS) scaffold by co-culturing human dermal fibroblasts with human colorectal carcinoma, endometrial epithelial, and male uroepithelial cells. Functional analyses such as transepithelial electrical resistance (TEER) and FITC-dextran assay indicated the high barrier integrity of the created monolayer. The histological, immunohistochemical, and ultra-structural analyses showed that the 3D SIS scaffold-based models closely mimic the main characteristics of the site of gonococcal infection in human host including the epithelial monolayer, the underlying connective tissue, mucus production, tight junction, and microvilli formation. We infected the established 3D tissue models with different N. gonorrhoeae strains and derivatives presenting various phenotypes regarding adhesion and invasion. The results indicated that the disruption of tight junctions and increase in interleukin production in response to the infection is strain and cell type-dependent. In addition, the models supported bacterial survival and proved to be better suitable for studying infection over the course of several days in comparison to commonly used Transwell® models. This was primarily due to increased resilience of the SIS scaffold models to infection in terms of changes in permeability, cell destruction and bacterial transmigration. In summary, the SIS scaffold-based 3D tissue models of human mucosal tissues represent promising tools for investigating N. gonorrhoeae infections under close-to-natural conditions.

Aims: Although lead exposure has, in the absence of mathematical modelling, been believed to elevate blood pressure in females, it is necessary to clarify the relation between lead and blood pressure by eliminating confounding factors in the analysis. Methods: Blood lead was measured in 193 female workers, including 123 lead exposed workers. Possible confounding factors were controlled by multiple regression analyses. Results and Conclusion: Blood lead above 40 µg/dl was found to be the most potent factor for elevating systolic/diastolic blood pressure. Aging, urine protein, and plasma triglyceride also contributed to systolic/diastolic/pulse pressure increase, but hypertensive heredity did not. Data suggested that lead induced changes in lipoprotein metabolism may play an important role in the lead induced blood pressure increase in female workers. Blood pressure is believed to become increased among residents exposed to lead, such as that emitted from house paint, gasoline, and other sources. Several reports are available concerning the lead-blood pressure relation in which confounding factors (age, sex, hypertensive heredity, nutrition, lead exposure level, etc) were adjusted by mathematical modelling.1-7 Harlan and colleagues 8 described a close association between blood lead and systolic or diastolic blood pressure, based on the Second National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data (NHANES II). We have also applied mathematical modelling to our survey data on 220 male workers, and found that diastolic blood pressure was increased in male workers with blood lead concentrations above 40 µg/dl.9 On the other hand, Harlan 10 indicated that blood lead was closely related to systolic and diastolic pressures in males but not in females, based on multiple regression analysis. Female workers were normally not included or exposed to lower concentrations of lead, and no consensus for the relation between lead exposure and blood lead has been established.We therefore examined the lead induced increase of blood pressure in female workers by the use of mathematical modelling. METHODS Study populationThe study population consisted of 127 female crystal toy making workers (age range 17-44 years, mean (SD) 27.3 (5.4) years; duration of employment 0.8-25.0 years, mean 7.2 (4.6) years) and 70 female sewing workers (age range 16-58 years, mean 24.2 (6.4) years; duration of employment 0.1-11.4 years, mean 2.2 (2.2) years). All female workers were examined in each factory. Both factories were located in Beijing City, China. The working environment of the crystal toy making factory was contaminated with lead dust at concentrations of 0.39-1.91 mg/m 3 (mean 0.92 (0.42)) that were much higher than the occupational exposure limit of 0.05 mg/m 3 recommended by the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists.11 The suburban environment, the target site, was also seriously polluted with lead from automobile exhaust gases, although no precise data were available for the target site at the time of our survey. Table 1...